​Traditionally, binge viewing via Netflix, Hulu and other streaming services has tended to benefit television shows later in their lives. AMC’s “Breaking Bad” is a great example of a show that took off like a rocket in later seasons after viewers had a few years to catch up on previous seasons.

But Ad Age reports that a few networks, led by MTV and Disney, are aiming to shift that pattern by letting people binge on shows before they even hit the airwaves, in the hopes that it will build buzz and drive more tune-in once a show makes its broadcast debut.

We already told you about MTV premiering its entire first season of the new docudrama “Wait ‘Til Next Season” on its mobile app. Now comes word that Disney is putting the first nine episodes of “Sheriff Callie’s Wild West” on its Watch Disney Junior app on Nov. 24, even though the show itself won’t be seen by broadcast audiences until early next year.

Both MTV and Disney are hoping that the pre-broadcast binges will lead the viewers back to the linear channels. Ad Age reported that Disney sees an additional advantage in allowing preschoolers some additional time to get to know characters and the show.

Read More: Ad Age

Brief Take: A shift towards early bingeing in the life of a series could help shift the benefits of streaming away from the over the top players—who use those binges to build their subscriber bases—and back to the networks, who could use pre-broadcast buzz to drive tune-in. The shift also offers advertisers a way to play in the streaming space, since they’re currently shut out of Netflix.

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